[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11663]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     FUNDING TO BUILD A BORDER WALL

  (Mrs. LAWRENCE asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. LAWRENCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong opposition to the 
proposed border wall funding.
  Instead of wasting $1.6 billion in taxpayers' dollars on an 
unnecessary border wall, the DHS should focus its limited resources on 
more important border security priorities.
  This includes upgrading and hiring more personnel for ports of entry, 
the main path for illegal drugs. This could include better and more 
technology so that border security agents will have a better idea what 
is happening along the borders.
  The border wall will be dangerous. Violence, poverty, and family ties 
ensure that migrants will continue attempting the risky journey through 
the border region's hostile zones.
  The border wall will be divisive. We need to do our job, Mr. Speaker, 
and come together as a Congress for a comprehensive immigration plan; 
at the least, reform of our immigration policies. Building a wall sends 
a toxic message to one of our closest neighbors, a country on which we, 
the United States, depend on.

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